The present invention relates generally to music information supply systems for communicating (transmitting/receiving) music information (music content), such as information representative of music pieces and effect sounds, between individual apparatus via a wired or wireless communication network such as the Internet, and particularly to portal servers serving as the center of such music information supply systems. For example, the present invention relates to a music content supply technique which, in a case where music information is used to produce incoming-call alerting melodies, alarm sounds, background music tones, etc. for use in portable communication terminal apparatus such as portable (cellular) phones, allows users to purchase music piece data of a same music piece possessed by a plurality of music information servers by providing an improved portal server that functions as an entrance to the users for connection to the music information servers (music content servers).
Today, music information supply services are widely employed which use desired music pieces as incoming-call alerting melodies, alarm sounds, background music tones, etc. for portable communication terminal apparatus such as portable (cellular) phones. On a communication network, there exist a plurality of music information servers (music content servers) independently of each other, and each of these music information servers possesses its own music piece database. When a user of a portable communication terminal apparatus wants to purchase desired music piece data (music content) to be used as an incoming-call alerting melody, it has been conventional for the user to access a desired one of the music information servers and enter various search words or conditions, such as the name and musical genre of the desired music piece, to thereby download, from the desired music information server, the music piece data matching the entered search conditions. In downloading the music piece data, the music information server carries out a predetermined billing process, e.g. billing per music piece or collective billing per month. Further, the user has to pay data communication charges (packet charges) for transmitting one or more various search conditions and receiving a list of music piece data sets having been found by the search.
Generally, music piece data sets possessed by the individual music information servers differ in details (such as arrangement, musical key and/or chordal construction) among the music information servers even if the music piece data sets are of a same original music piece, and therefore the musical quality of the music piece data sets would also differ from one music information server to another. However, before the desired music piece data set is downloaded from one of such music information servers and then audibly reproduced by the portable communication terminal apparatus, the user of the terminal apparatus can not know how the desired music piece data set plays. Therefore, even when the music piece data set delivered from the music information server is not satisfactory or agreeable to the user, the predetermined billing process is performed by the server to bill the user for the music piece data set, which results in wasteful expense for the user. Thus, to effectively acquire a desired music piece data set, the user has perform a series of operations of entering and transmitting one or more predetermined search conditions, then receiving searched results and then downloading and audibly reproducing the desired music data set, separately for each of the individual music information servers possessing music piece data sets based on a same original music piece. In such a case, the user has incurred an increased downloading cost that is almost equivalent to a cost for downloading music piece data sets of a plurality of music pieces, as well as an increased data communication charge due to communication with the plurality of music information servers. Further, the music information servers accessed by the user do not necessarily possess desired music piece data sets, and thus the operations for searching the desired music piece data set may lead to a waste of money and time. In addition, it is not easy for the user to judge which of the music information servers possesses the desired music piece data set having superior quality and meeting his or her demand.